Meereen
Meereen is the northernmost and the largest of the three great Slaver Cities of Slaver's Bay. It is ruled by the Great Masters, the heads of Meereen's slaving families, and its wealthiest of citizens live in stepped pyramids. Their emblem is a harpy: a woman's torso, wings of a bat instead of arms, legs of an eagle and a scorpion's tail. Unlike Astapor and Yunkai, the Meereenese harpy does not carry anything in her claws. Meereen lies on the northeast coast of Slaver's Bay at the mouth of the Skahazadhan, where it flows from its origins in Lhazar through a range of sandstone mountains separating Meereen and the rest of Slaver's Bay from the red waste. The Kingdom of Sarnor, beyond the river. To reach Lhazar from Meereen one must pass through the Khyzai Pass. City Layout Meereen is as large as Astapor and Yunkai combined. Like them it is made of brick, except here the bricks are of many colors. It has wide brick streets and narrow alleys, and the fighting pits are also made of red brick. Meereen's multi-colored walls are higher and better maintained than those of Yunkai, studded with bastions and anchored by great defensive towers at every angle. The north wall of the city runs along the river bank of the Skahazadhan, the river that flows through the city. Its west wall runs along the shore of Slaver's Bay. Bronze harpy heads with open mouths top its gates, from which the Meereenese can pour boiling oil to deter attackers. Meereen draws its water from deep wells instead of the Skahazadhan, into which the brick sewers of the city empty out. The monstrous Great Pyramid, located at Meereen's central plaza, is huge; eight hundred feet tall and topped with a towering bronze harpy. There are a score of lesser pyramids in the city, but none stand even half as high. The Temple of the Graces, west of the Great Pyramid, is a huge structure topped with golden domes. It houses the priestesses of Meereen, called the Graces. They are divided into groups, each with a specific color and specialty. The fighting pits of Meereen are huge circular arenas. The largest and most extravagant is the multi-colored Daznak's Pit. The zo Pahl family is the wealthiest family in the city. The wealthy grow figs, dates, and olives in pyramid terraces. There are also olive groves along the shores of nearby Slaver's Bay, and cedars once grew in the region. The Master’s Plaza The Master’s Plaza is the central area of the city, home to both the Great Pyramid and the Temple of the Graces. Passage through the plaza is strictly controlled, and only Great Masters and their guests are allowed to freely cross the Plaza. The pyramids that house the Great Masters are located along the outer edges of this district. An informal hierarchy has formed based on the proximity of a Master’s pyramid to the Great Pyramid. Scattered among these buildings are dozens of gardens, fountains, and bathhouses. Temple of the Graces The Temple of the Graces is huge structure with numerous golden domes that houses the Graces, priestesses of the Harpy. The Graces are separated into orders, each with its own colour. * The Green Grace - the smallest but most prestigious of the orders, there is only a single Green Grace in each city, as they are the priestesses of prophecy. It is not uncommon for a Great Master to consult with the Green Grace before making any major business decisions, and the Great Masters as a whole will often consult the Green Grace before going to war. * The Blue Graces - called the Healing Hands of the Harpy by the residents of Ghiscar, the Blue Graces serve much as the maesters bearing a silver chain-link do in Westeros. The Sapphire Quarters of the Temple of the Graces is a centre of medicine for primarily the wealthy of the city, but the Priestesses go out into the city on a weekly basis to serve those unable to make the journey. * The Red Graces - the most numerous of the Graces, Red Graces are priestesses of love, fertility, and sex. It is not unheard of for pillowslaves that have gained the favor of a Great Master to be taken in by the Red Graces. Red Graces are consulted most commonly by the wives of Great Masters who are attempting to conceive, and they sometimes grant private “prayer sessions” to Great Masters. * The White Graces - the White Graces are responsible for the day-to-day worship of the Harpy and the other Gods of Ghis. They hold important positions in all religious festivals, and are often of noble birth, but deemed unsuitable for the pleasure palaces. * The Pink Graces - sometimes known as the Graces of the Graces, the Pink Graces serve to support the other organisations in their order, most prominently through recruitment from the families of the Masters of Yunkai, Astapor and Meereen, but also as overseers of the guardsmen dedicated to the protection of the Green Grace. * The Purple Graces - with the exception of the Green Grace, the Purple Graces are the smallest group of Graces. This is because the Purple Graces are priestesses to the slaves. In practice, they perform many of the same functions as the White Graces, except for the enslaved of Meereen, as the slaves are not permitted to attend the same religious services as the Great Masters. * The Gold Graces - dedicated to service of the Great Masters in death as the other Graces are in life, the Gold Graces preside over the funeral rites of the nobleborn of the city, marking them with a vertical band of gold dye from hair-line to chin so that Hlaatep, The Seer knows them to be worthy of his judgement. The Harbour The harbour of Meereen is the southernmost district. It is always bustling with activity as sailors from all over Essos trade goods and slaves. The harbour area is dominated by the Harpy’s Light, a huge lighthouse dwarfed only by the Great Pyramid itself, which helps guide ships into the harbour. The Plaza of Service To the east of the Master’s Plaza is the Plaza of Service. This is the area with the greatest concentration of slaves, holding the slave markets, the pillowhouses, and most notably, the fighting pits. The largest and most celebrated fighting pit, Daznak’s Pit, is located along the western border of the district, closest to the Master’s Plaza. Mazdhan’s Maze Mazdhan’s Maze is the informal name given to the western district of the city. It is called so because this district is a labyrinthine maze of shops, homes, brothels, storehouses, and all other kinds of buildings. It is said that anything that one may need to buy can be found in Mazdhan’s Maze. The selling of slaves, however, is forbidden in the Maze, and must be done in the Plaza of Service, where the Great Masters and their guards can keep a closer eye on Meereen’s greatest resource. Timeline of Events * 86BA - The Ghiscari city of Ghardaq is sacked and renamed Krazaaj Has for sharp mountain-like appearance of the Ghiscari pyramids within its borders. * 75BA - Khal Vorro sacks the Ghiscari city of Hazdahn Mo, naming it Vaes Diaf - the City of the Skull. * 73BA - The Ghiscari cities of Yekoi and Mareekai near the source of the Skahazadhan are sacked by Khal Vazzo and his bloodriders. They are renamed Vaes Efe and Vaes Majhah, meaning City of Shackles and City of Whores respectively. * 43BA - In the half a decade following the destruction of Vaes Dothrak, the last of the true Khalasars are hunted down by Sarnori, Qartheen, Ghiscari and Ibbenese scouting parties. * 5AA - The Kings of Kasath and Sathar come into conflict with the Great Masters of Meereen over the control of the Ghiscari hill city of Hazdahn Mo. The Battle of the Red Peak represents the first of many conflicts between the Sarnori and the Ghiscari. * 14AA - An invasion force from Sathar, lead by the King Lalir Ovros marches once again for Hazdahn Mo, seeking revenge for the death of his brother at the Battle of the Red Peak. Sacking the city, he marches east for Ghardaq, where he too is eventually slain by a Ghiscari army commanded by the King of Meereen and bolstered by the Second Sons sellsword company. * 226AA - The Third War for Yaros fought between Astapor and Yunkai occurs. Having hired Tolosi slingers, the armies of the Red City strike suddenly to cease control of the largely uninhabited isle, and begin to fortify, knowing that their actions would garner a response. When the Yunkai'i arrive a moon and a half later, they do so with a fleet bolstered by the Meereenese, who would prefer the isle to be in the hands of the less militant Yunkai'i compared to the Astapori. When Commander Azhis mo Maar is slain, the Astapori are forced into retreat, and the Yunkai'i claim dominion over the isle. * 234AA - An army from Sathar marches south, bound for the Ghiscari city of Hazdahn Mo. Opting to instead starve out the occupants that engage in an assault, Mahor Ansoura, King of Sathar, begins to siege the city. It would take nearly two years for the occupants to finally break. * 236AA - The city of Hazdahn Mo finally breaks, having been sieged by a Sarnori army for two years. The Masters of the city surrender, and mercy is shown in exchange for their support of the Sarnori Kingdoms. The city is renamed Hadosh by its new occupants. * 243AA - After diminishing trade with the city of Hazdahn Mo, renamed Hadosh by its Sarnori occupants, the Great Masters of Meereen, under guidance from the Green Grace, prepare an army to retake the city. * 244AA - An Unsullied Legion is sent from Astapor to Meereen to join with the invasion force formed by the Great Masters to retake Hazdahn Mo from the Sarnori. The army marches north, arriving at the gates of the once-Ghiscari city, but find that the Sarnori army is nowhere to be seen. The city falls near bloodlessly. * 246AA - After nearly two and a half years hunting a fabled Dothraki Khalasar, Mahor Ansoura and his men return to Hazdahn Mo, finding it occupied by Ghiscari. Before they can prepare for a siege, the inhabitants ride forth from the gates, attacking the Tagaez Fen as they prepare their weaponry and siege units. After a devastating first clash, King Mahor calls for a full retreat, marching his men north once more, to the seat of his family, Sathar. * 266AA - Hearing of the ongoing conflict in Astapor, the Green Graces of Yunkai and Meereen denounce the House of Rhaohl, echoing the words of their Astapori counterpart. Noble Houses from both Yunkai and Meereen join the war on the side of the House of Erdaz and the Green Grace. The War of the Graces is considered to have truly begun. * 267AA - The Battle of the Worm is fought to the east of Astapor, between an army of Yunkai'i sellswords and the Unsullied of the House of Rhaohl and their allies. When the House of Ullhor arrives at the battlefield with the strength of their Unsullied army, the Yunkai'i force breaks, and flees north. Following reinforcements from Meereen, Yunkai once more marches south, meeting the armies of Ullhor and Rhaohl outside the walls of Astapor. Krazyn mo Rhaohl is betrayed however, when commander Hazkol mo Ullhor turns on him in the name of the Green Grace. The noble family of Rhaohl is ejected from the city in the aftermath, and flees with the last of their wealth to Hazdahn Mo. * 274AA - The Bedslave Riots started following the death of the Wise Master Graklol na Faez during a training session in the Halls of Silk. The two involved bedslaves are sentenced to death, despite protests that the Wise Master had complained of a pain in his chest before falling unresponsive. Several of the teachers within the Halls of Silk rush in the defence of the bedslaves, stirring conflict. When no change to the sentencing occurs, riots fill the streets around the pillowhouses, and a number of Masters are slain by their bedslaves. The Wise Masters are quick in their response, opting to purge the Hall of Silk in its entirety and acquire new stock from the Basilisk Isles * 287AA - The simultaneous sieges of Sathar and Kasath by a Ghiscari army of sellswords and slave warriors following growing tensions regarding trade through Kasath and Hazdahn Mo result in the disorganisation of commerce throughout the Kingdom of Sarnor. Whilst the cities are eventually delivered from their beleaguers by armies from Gornath-by-the-Lake and Sarnath, the effects of the blockade of the City of Caravans remains felt to present day. * 288AA - The Burning of the Skahazadhan. In response to the huge Ghiscari-funded army of sellswords and slave warriors marching north in an attempt to sack Kasath and Sathar a year previously, the High-King of Sarnath leads the counter-attack personally, bringing with him an army numbering near forty thousand, including eight thousand chariots. They ravage the cities of Mareekai, Ghardaq and Hesh, but cannot break the defences of Meereen. Sacking Hazdahn Mo on their return to Sarnor, they leave a wake of devastation and death. * 297AA - The Slave Revolts of Grazdan the Golden is the most recent in a number of attempted slave revolts, and by far the most successful. Started by a slave in training to made into an Unsullied, 'Grazdan' rallied his brothers in arms to rise up against their masters, quickly liberating thousands of slaves throughout the city. Swarming through the Plaza of Pain, they are joined by a number of pitfighters, who then set the Plaza of Punishment ablaze, granting mercy to those slaves too weak to save. With the City Watch primarily made of slaves, Grazdan and his liberated army march free from Astapor without interruption and go on to start similar uprisings in Yunkai and Meereen. For five moons, the followers of Grazdan the Golden swell in number to nearly twenty-thousand, before they are set upon by a sellsword army hired by the Masters. Two-fifths are slaughtered, the vast remaining resubjugated, but Grazdan's body is never recovered, leading many of the recaptured slaves to speculate that one day, maybe, he may return to free them once more. Category:Slaver's Bay Category:Meereen Category:Ghiscari Category:Ghiscar Category:City Category:Essos